Is this behavior normal?

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hanmb

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I picked up a baby (1-2 months old, about 5.5' long) beardie yesterday, and there are a couple behaviors I would like to ask the community about...

Here's the most pressing and worrisome issue currently:

The people I bought him/her from gave me some crickets to take home to feed them (I bought phoenix worms but almost all of them came dead in the mail). I fed about 7 to them last night, until s/he got full. I turned on the lights this morning and s/he threw up what looked like the remains of 1.5 crickets. I researched and found that the crickets were too big (which is what I thought in the first place, but I trusted the shopkeeper to give me the right crickets). I went out and bought dubia roaches just now (and came home to a slightly smaller cricket upchuck), and my baby won't eat them or any of the salad I left out and tried to hand-feed to him/her. Its bowel movements are normal, so it's not an impaction I don't think. S/he hasnt eaten all day (it's about 2pm here), and I'm very concerned, because it's said that baby beardies eat a ton. Should I take the baby to the vet? Is there something I can do to help him/her?

And here are some smaller questions I have about his/her behavior:

  • -Sometimes my beardie will jump at the glass or other objects from the log in its tank - not in a hunting way, more like a kamikaze way, if that makes sense. What's up with that?

    -My baby tends to spend 90% of its time on the hammock below the basking lamp. S/he only comes down when I need to clean or when they want to do a couple rounds of running around the perimeter of the tank and jumping into things. The cooler side of the tank remains almost completely uninhabited. I have a 75 gallon tank, so there's plenty more to explore. Is it because the tank is too cold or something? Or is that just his/her favorite spot?

    -How long should I wait to handle/bond with my baby? I've heard to leave it alone for as much as possible for the first couple days, but it's been hard because I'm trying to get it to eat, cleaning up waste, etc etc.

    -I have a salad sitting in the tank all day, is that okay, or should I remove it and only put it back in there at meal time?

Thanks so much for your help!! :)
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
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It sounds like some trouble digesting/handling the big crickets. I'd ease up on offering food for a bit and maybe offer some drops of water on his nose to lick up and help rehydrate him a bit. Hopefully that's the last of the throwing up. I'm glad you were able to find some smaller bugs for him. Both the crickets and small roaches should work nicely but I'd probably wait a day or so and focus on water to help his system recuperate a little. The basking behavior is pretty normal. They like their warm spots. As long as the UVB light is at appropriate distance and he has a good temperature range to choose from, let him bask if that's what he wants to do.
Give it a few days before handling much but it's really an individual preference. They're all so different - some of them are fine with handling right away, some take months, and in between. Just try to read the body language a bit on that one.
The salad can sit in the tank all day. it's good to keep a salad available as a food option so it's familiar even if the little ones tend to ignore it (this is normal). The leftovers can go to the bugs. They tend to get more interested in veges at around 12-18 months when they are fully grown.
 
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Clapton is acclimating okay I think. He's quick as lightning so I'm not sure how much I should bring him out of his house yet. He's not at all interested in his salad though. I wonder if I should change what I'm giving him. Least he's eating his crickets.

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